Live like you'll die tomorrow but believe that you'll live forever.

My favorite tattoo is my back piece. It's based off of one of my drawings. It depicts the universe coming into existence as a phoenix carrying the human species emerges from the center of the Big Bang. It is supposed to represent the resiliency of life itself and the admiration I have for it's existence. I first sketched my idea out on paper during a major drawing binge where I pretty much barricaded myself in my room for several weeks with my charcoal and my sketch book, good times. One of the main inspirations for my tattoo was an undiagnosed illness that came close to tclaiming my own life. For several months I was loosing weight uncontrollably and had no idea why. The doctors kept saying I was fine and I was eating constantly. I was down to 100lbs [about 30lbs underweight for my 5'7" frame by medical standards], I was very weak and was always sleeping. One day, when I tried to lift myself out of bed, my arms immediately collapsed underneath me. I barely had any muscle left on my body. At that point I knew there was something very wrong, I knew was running out of time and I had no clue why. By chance, at an unrelated doctors visit, my regular doctor happened to be out and I had to see the on call doctor. I almost left without mentioning my symptoms, yet again, because I was so fed up with my complaints falling on deaf ears. Luckily this doctor finally listened. I had a blood test done which came back positive for Type 1 Diabetes. All I needed to stay alive was a needle and a vile of insulin. A sense of relief swept over me, I wasn't dead yet. 7 years later, that experience still impacts the way I think and live. I don't regret my mistakes because they are part of my life. And I believe that every moment should be embraced, whether it is exciting or mediocre, embarrassing or graceful, painful or pleasurable, happy or miserable, these moments are why we are here and I want to live every single one. Tattoo Artist: Canman at Visions Tattoo in Medway, MA